Harry Potter Articles

Well I already know what I’m doing next summer. Duana and I exchanged a text this morning about making plans to go to London in 2016. After that we psychologised My So Called Life and how Jordan Catalano lacks empathy. This is another conversation altogether. This is an entire semester altogether.

But back to The Cursed Child. Who is The Cursed Child?

Please. Harry Potter, obviously. JK Rowling has collaborated with Jack Thorne and John Tiffany on a new play that will, as she tweeted, tell a “new story”. Baz Bamigboye, however, at the Daily Mail, one of the publication’s few reliable voices, reports that The Cursed Child will focus on Lily and James and Petunia might show up and Snape has to show up and that means Sirius and the crew will be there and they’ll all be around 18 or 19 years old, just before Harry was born.

Eddie Redmayne has joined the Harry Potter family. It was confirmed yesterday that Eddie will play Newt Scamander in Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them. The first film of the planned trilogy will be released November 2016 and is being written by JK Rowling herself. In case you didn’t know – and, um, why wouldn’t you, didn’t we ALL go to Hogwarts??? – these movies are prequels to the story we’ve practically memorised; Newt Scamander wrote the Fantastic Beasts textbook that Harry, Hermione, and Ron – but really only Hermione – studied at school. Full Story

JK Rowling was in New York today lighting up the Empire State Building to mark the launch of Lumos, her children’s charity, raising awareness for kids living in orphanages around the world. Lumos, if you know your Potter, is the spell that lights up your wand. She’s been the light for a lot of people, young and old, for many, many years, including those of you in university writing finals this month. Full Story

Maybe you don’t understand the drama, but there were a lot of parents trying to coax their teenagers out of the bathroom last night, OK? This is real pain.

And then…

The Dark Lord Funk came and soothed it. They know the world. They KNOW our world. That’s what makes me so happy about this video – because it was created by legit students of magic. One of us. Or at least one of me. Because I belong to Slytherin House. And we won the House Cup. And I actually do HAVE a wand to drop.

A wand drop!

I don’t carry my wand around with me every day, what the f-ck is my problem?

There’s a new story bit about Draco Malfoy on Pottermore, and a rumination from J.K. Rowling on the character. I had to change my Pottermore password three times before I could actually access it, which I am convinced is part of the goal – to make it difficult for you, to make it worth it when you finally unlock the story you’re looking for and give you a sense of achievement. Full Story

OMG.
Dolores Umbridge is back. For Halloween.
It was announced on Pottermore today that JK Rowling has written a new Harry Potter story to be posted on Halloween and it’s about Umbridge and her backstory – how did she get so pink and catty? The last time Jo gave us some new material – from the Quidditch World Cup – her site crashed. Full Story

Is Ethan Hawke your re-boyfriend yet? If you say no, is it because you haven’t seen Boyhood?
See it. Then be the contrarian. I know the type. The film has received near universal acclaim, currently sitting at a 99% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But some people just get ruined by hype. Full Story

Nelson Mandela would have been in Gryffindor, for sure.
But Luther? Luther is TOTALLY Slytherin. Like me!
Check out Idris Elba wearing Slytherin colours at Leavesden Studios the other day with his daughter. His daughter Isan is Hufflepuff. You know who’s Hufflepuff? Duana. It’s one of the great frustrations of her life. Full Story

Last year, Warner Brothers announced their intention to make a Harry Potter spin-off film based on a text book mentioned in the series, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander. Now, Warner Brothers CEO Kevin Tsujihara tells the New York Times that the Fantastic Beasts spin-off will in fact be three “megamovies” and are described as being neither prequels nor any linear relation to Harry’s story. Full Story

JK Rowling told Emma Watson that Hermione and Ron really shouldn’t have ended up together. And that, when the story was over, it really should have been Hermione and Harry. What she’s not saying is how Hermione would have eventually gotten there. And what would have happened in between. Between Hogwarts and Harry (eventually), what would Hermione’s life have been like? Definitely not the straight line between high school sweetheart to marriage and children.

Well, she created them so of course she’s right. With all that curiosity, how could Hermione not have wanted more experiences, more variety, more lovers, more…MORE.

"I wrote the Hermione/Ron relationship as a form of wish fulfillment. That's how it was conceived, really. For reasons that have very little to do with literature and far more to do with me clinging to the plot as I first imagined it, Hermione ended up with Ron. Read Full Intro

Our Mother of Magic, JK Rowling, isn’t a carpet whore. She keeps a very, very low profile, even at her own movie premieres. So it’s exciting when she goes out. And she seems to be really into Wimbledon. She and her husband were seated in the Royal Box and watched Serena Williams and Novak Djokovic win their matches today. Full Story

Prince William, his Catherine, and Prince Harry were in Diagon Alley today picking up some wands. Somewhere there’s a joke in there about Harry and his stick but I’m not clever enough to find it. As you can see, Kate seems terrified by the glow on the end of Harry’s. Lumos!
The best, best, BEST of course is Harry at The Burrow. Full Story

Look! It's hot Neville with his hair buzzed!Neville, Luna, Ginny, and director David Yates were at the Empire Awards last night. Am assuming that's his gf? Our Neville is hot now. Hot enough for a lady friend. Neville - Matthew Lewis for reals - stars in a new show on BBC called The Syndicate about lottery winners that premiered on BBC. Full Story